Head restraints, which may be located on the top of a seat, may have a mechanism, release, or control, such as a push-button, to release or unlock the head restraint in order for the head restraint height (vertical position relative to the seat) to be adjusted. Typically, the control is located away from the head restraint itself. Thus, in order to raise or lower the head restraint, the user must push or activate the control with one hand while moving the head restraint with the other hand, thus requiring the user to use two hands, and further resulting in uncomfortable and difficult head restraint adjustment. Further, in order to minimize the amount of “buzz, squeak, rattle” (BSR) and “noise, vibration, harshness” (NVH), and since the locking mechanism alone may not be sufficient to sufficiently reduce BSR and NVH, the sliding friction to move the head restraint may be relatively high. Therefore, the control and the head restraint may require a significant amount of effort and force to activate and to move, respectively, further reinforcing the need to use both hands to adjust the head restraint.
Additionally, the contours of such a head restraint, typically are not adjustable. Often, the head restraint will have a static outer shape.
PCT patent document WO 2015/175655 having a priority date of 14 May 2014 and a publication date of 19 Nov. 2015 describes a head restraint which is adjustable and is incorporated by reference. The device in this document has disadvantages in that the positions for adjustment are limited and require relatively large efforts to switch between locking the head restraint and releasing the head restraint.